


Hanging By a Moment

by NatRogers



Series: A Little Favor ‘verse [3]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Coworkers - Freeform, F/M, Family, Friends With Benefits, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Marriage, New York City, Parenthood
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-08
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:47:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 38
Words: 18,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23506357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NatRogers/pseuds/NatRogers
Summary: Tidbits of the life of Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff Rogers as they raise their children, Isabel and Joseph, in New York City with the help of their family and friends.A compiled version of the drabble challenge on Tumblr. All prompts submitted by readers.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Wanda Maximoff, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Stephen Strange/Christine Palmer, Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanov, Thor/Jane Foster
Series: A Little Favor ‘verse [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1153823
Comments: 174
Kudos: 299





	1. The One With Mrs. Rogers

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys! Just wanted to make something clear. This collection is **not** meant to replace Beyond a Favor. Rather, it's a place to compile all the drabbles I've written on Tumblr to help get out of writer's block. All of the chapters here are meant to be short and sweet. 
> 
> Happy reading!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> calfairy87 asked: I noticed that Nat uses Romanoff Rogers like Izzie now too. Can we get the exact moment Steve found out she changed her name?

“I think you need to speak to IT. I tried to send you an email, but it bounced.”

“Your office is five feet away,” Natasha says, looking up from her computer to see Steve standing at the threshold of her office. “Ever heard of the art of conversation?”

“I can’t just tell you about a GIF,” he says, his explanation earning an incredulous stare from her. He sighs. “It’s a Golden Retriever eating watermelon-”

“We are not getting a dog,” she interrupts.

“We’ll see,” he says, smiling. “But seriously. You should call IT. The error message said there isn’t a Natasha Romanoff at The Daily.”

She shrugs. “Because there isn’t.”

“What?” Her only response is to point behind him, and his eyebrows furrow in confusion when he turns to see nothing but the door with the golden plaque at the center. He scoffs. “You don’t have to be rude. Just say-”

The phone rings, but it’s not so much the offending sound as it is the name he realizes that’s embossed on the plaque that cuts his words short. A smile all but splits his face as he turns back to Natasha.

Her lips curl into a smirk, her eyes never leaving his as she brings the phone to her ear. “Natasha Romanoff Rogers.”


	2. The One Where Steve Is Popular

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: For the drabble thing: People being all over Steve. Your choice how Nat reacts ;)

“The girls are over at the corner making friends,” Natasha hears Pepper say, her best friend’s gaze falling to where her eyes are trained as she comes to stand next to her. “Are you really feeding him to the sharks?”  
  
She bites the inside of her cheek to keep her smile at bay. “He was in the Army. He can handle himself.”  
  
“Your funeral,” Pepper offers, a hint of amusement in her voice as they both watch Steve, with Joey still in his arms, stuck in conversation with a group of people.  
  
With Isabel and Maria both starting first grade in the Fall, they had taken this open house at their new school as an opportunity for the girls to see their new environment and for them as parents to get a feel of the community they would soon be a part of. Meeting the teachers had made her more confident about her and Steve’s decision to enroll Isabel at this school and chatting with the other parents had assured her that her daughter would be in good company. Well, most of them did, anyway. Some parents were interesting, to say the least, but she’s determined to hold off on passing judgment. They’ve only met once, and if she’s learned anything in her line of work, it’s that she needs to be thorough before coming to a conclusion. After all, it’s the first time these parents are meeting them as well, and far be it for her to judge them on how they all but ogle her husband upon seeing him in the flesh.  
  
The last thought makes her chuckle. She couldn’t ignore the stir Steve had caused the second they had walked into the classroom, his presence raising a few brows and prompting some moms to shift in their seats or tuck a suddenly bothersome tendril of hair behind their ears. Not that he had noticed, too preoccupied with making sure their two-year-old’s bow tie was on straight, and not that she could really blame them for gawking, either. If the sight of Steve in dark jeans and a blue button up with the sleeves rolled deliciously up his elbows still made her catch her breath after six years of being married to the man, everyone else with a pulse didn’t really stand a chance. But that’s all moot, anyway. She trusts her husband implicitly and, compared to the benefactors they have to woo at charity events, these moms are harmless.  
  
Well, relatively harmless.  
  
She watches as one of the moms throws her head back in laughter, presumably at something Steve said, before reaching over to playfully shove his shoulder. Only unlike most of the moms who had tried to play it cool with a seemingly innocent touch, this woman’s hand does not leave, instead trailing down his arm and to his bicep, and eliciting a polite yet brittle smile from Steve as he takes a step back and the reality of the situation finally dawns on him. She smirks. _There you go_.  
  
Steve says something to the woman, before turning in her direction, and though he tries to hide it under the guise of having Joey wave to her, she spots the look in his eyes. To anyone else, it’s an admiring gaze, a husband flirting with his wife from across the room. And though that’s certainly part of it, she knows better, knows that somewhere in that admiration is a cry for help, imploring her to please put him out of his misery.  
  
Normally, she would oblige, seamlessly jumping into the role of the White Knight to her soldier in distress. But today, as she waves enthusiastically back at her son, she decides that since she’s already let her husband walk into the lion’s den, she might as well have fun with it.  
  
“Natasha,” Pepper says, laughing incredulously. “Throw the poor man a bone before he uses your son as a human shield, will you?”  
  
“He’s fine,” she insists, her eyes never leaving Joey’s and her smile that’s all too large and saccharine making Steve’s face fall from all the way across the room as another mom comes to talk to him.  
  
“You should really get in there,” Tony says, popping a pretzel into his mouth as he strolls over to them. “Those jeans are too dangerous. I’ll give him about two minutes before someone tries to cop a feel.” She turns to him, beaming, and Tony extends the bag to her. “And I have a feeling it’s not going to be one of the moms.”  
  
She reaches into the bag, taking a few pretzels before turning to Pepper. “I’ll rescue him in two minutes.”  
  
“You know he’s going to make you pay for this, right?” Tony asks.  
  
“He better,” she says with a smile, making Tony’s face sour and Pepper shake her head.


	3. The One Where Steve’s Jealous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> naaadineee98 asked: Steve being jealous of Strange before he and Nat were official because homeboy was def feeling the green eyed monster then

“There you are,” Natasha says, walking onto the balcony of Tony and Pepper’s guest bedroom to see Steve leaning against the railing, a crystal tumbler clutched in one hand. “Tony said I might find you here.”

He glances at her before looking back out into the illuminated skyline. “You know Tony, ever the clairvoyant,” he says, bringing his drink to his lips.

She hums in agreement, moving to rest her side against the railing. “You gonna stay here all night? You’ll miss out on all the fun.”

“Yeah…” he says, turning to mirror her position. His voice grows quiet as he adds, “You and Strange seem to be having a grand time.”

She rolls her lips at his words, finding herself slightly amused for reasons she can’t quite put her finger on. She hadn’t tolerated jealousy in any of her previous relationships, and technically, even though they were sleeping together, she and Steve weren’t in one now, but she finds that her annoyance is surprisingly absent. “Is that a problem?”

“No,” Steve says quickly – a little too much so – before shrugging and becoming suddenly engrossed by his shoes. “I just didn’t realize you two were so close.”

“If that’s what you call two people who hug,” she says, biting her lip. “But last I checked hugs could also be shared when your friend tells you good news. You know, like when they propose to their super gorgeous and smart doctor girlfriend and she says yes.”

He looks up at her, his posture immediately softening. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” she says, trying to keep her lips from pulling up into a smile. “Oh.”


	4. The One With The Bet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> storysleuth asked: Steve and Nat being little shits to each other. Bc, of course. + Anonymous asked: first night without Isabel

“I put her favorite elephant in the front pocket of her overnight bag,” Steve says, leaning closer to Natasha as they sit in the back of the limo. “Make sure you put it next to her before bed. If you don’t-”

“Are you going to go on like a broken record?” Bucky asks, staring pointedly into the camera.

A quiet chuckle falls from Natasha’s lips as she watches her husband’s expression grow sheepish at his best friend’s jab. Steve has been borderline frantic since they dropped Isabel off at Bucky’s place half an hour ago, and as much as she feels for Bucky’s sanity, she understands more than anyone Steve’s impulse to check everything off the list. While Bucky and Wanda have taken their daughter off their hands before, this is the first time they’re letting them do so for an entire night. But with Isabel having just turned three and growing increasingly independent with each day that passes, they had decided that taking a night out to themselves every now and then couldn’t hurt – even if said night out constitutes attending a Stark Foundation fundraiser.

But life is hectic, she reminds herself, and though there is a laundry list of things she’d rather be doing with her husband over this, beggars can’t be choosers when it comes to the location of date night.

Next to her, Steve sighs. “Sorry.”

“Don’t sweat it, punk,” Bucky says, his tone lighter now. “We’ll watch her with our lives. Scout’s honor.”

“We know that,” Steve says earnestly. “We’ll just say goodnight and be out of your hair.”

“Yeah, one sec,” Bucky says, his face disappearing from view when he flips to the back camera on his phone and begins to walk. He enters the living room, and she and Steve share a look when they see the blanket fort that’s been set up in the middle. Bucky kneels, crawling through the fort’s opening to reveal Wanda and Isabel cuddled together inside. “Hey, kiddo, say goodnight to your mom and dad.”

“Night, momma! Night, Daddy!” Isabel exclaims, peeling away from Wanda to sit in Bucky’s lap.

“Goodnight, fig,” she says, smiling. “Have fun with uncle Bucky and aunt Wanda, okay?”

“We’ll see you tomorrow at grandma Sarah’s for brunch,” Steve adds.

“Okay,” Isabel says, her eyes everywhere but the camera. “We’re watching Hercules.”

“Wow,” she says, “that’s-”

The sound of a timer buzzing cuts her off, and on the screen, she watches as Isabel’s eyes light up like Christmas morning. “Popcorn!” Isabel says excitedly. “Bye, momma! Bye, Daddy!”

“Wait,” Steve says, but it’s in vain as Isabel bounces out of Bucky’s lap and out of view. “We love you!”

“She’s gone,” Bucky says with a grimace. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” she says, slightly amused. “I guess we’ll see you tomorrow?”

“See ya,” Bucky says, giving them both a salute before ending the video chat.

“I truly thought we had until she was at least ten until we stopped being cool to talk to,” Steve laments.

She scoffs as she places her phone back in her purse. “You should know better than to bet against our daughter and snacks.”

“I’m just saying,” he says. “It’s popcorn now. What’s next? Shopping dates with Maria?”

“Cute boy in a band with a motorcycle.”

Steve’s face sours at the thought. “I’m blaming Tony when our daughter rides off with a kid in extra skinny jeans.”

“In hindsight, I’m pretty sure it’s going to be our daughter driving the motorcycle…” she says, watching as horror fills his features. She laughs. “Oh, come on. Lighten up, will you? I don’t like greasing up donors to pull out their checkbooks any more than you do, but tonight’s not all bad.”

“Yeah,” he says dryly. “The free champagne and canapés truly sweeten the deal.”

“I’m not above guzzling champagne Tony paid for,” she says, earning a nod in agreement from him. “Especially on the first kid-free night we’ve had in forever.”

He lets out a throaty laugh as he turns to her. “There it is.”

“What?”

“The other part of your agenda,” he says, his eyes slowly trailing from her face to her gown and then back up at her. “Should’ve known there was more to it than just my wife getting all dolled up for a night at the Met.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she says, looking out the window to hide her smile. Because truth be told, he isn’t wrong. She knew when she bought this dress that it would make an impression on him – her theory only proven right by the heated look that filled his eyes when she’d stepped out of their walk-in closet to reveal the dipping sweetheart neckline that cascaded down into a sea of scarlet. That’s not to say that it took elaborate evening wear to coax that look from him to begin with, though she’d be lying if she said she didn’t enjoy catching him off guard every once and awhile.

“No?” he says, his gaze not letting up. “Because if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’ve been plotting to drive me crazy all night. Maybe see if you can break me in front of all of Manhattan, even.”

“Believe what you want, Rogers,” she says, staring innocently at him even as the sight of him in his dark tux fills her mind with thoughts that are anything but. “I just thought the craftsmanship was impeccable.”

“Okay,” he says. “Then I guess I can expect you to be on your best behavior tonight.”

“Only if I can expect you to be on yours.”

“Because I’m the one that has trouble behaving,” he deadpans.

She raises an eyebrow at him in challenge. “Care to test that theory?”

“By all means,” he says, stealing a glance at the window as the car comes to a stop before looking back at her. “In fact, let’s put some stakes on it. First one to misbehave does laundry for the next two weeks.”

“Fine,” she says, the corners of her lips quirked up.

“Fine,” he says, pulling on the latch of the door. “Better buy bleach though because they’re starting finger painting at Izzie’s daycare next week.”

She gasps at his quip, but just as he has one foot out the door, she pulls him back, leaning in close to whisper in his ear. “Just so you know…” she says. “I’m not wearing anything under this dress.”

His shoulder tenses at her words, the scoff he lets out only causing excitement to bubble in her veins. “Game on, Romanoff.”


	5. The One Where Izzie Goes On A Date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Steve and Natasha deal with the kids going on dates, graduating, becoming parents (kids growing up).

“You okay?” Natasha asks, looking up from the basket of laundry she’s folding when Steve barges into their walk-in closet.

“I… I don’t know how to tell you this,” he says, the way he grimaces only exacerbating her concern. Very few things in life could make her husband as flustered as he is at the moment and judging by the way he seems unable to do anything but fidget, she knows whatever it is must be big. “But I have to. And you… Okay, I’m just gonna- Do you want to sit? Maybe you should sit.”

“Rogers,” she says firmly, moving to stand in front of him. “You’re babbling. Take a deep breath and then spit it out.”

He draws air into his lungs before exhaling deeply, his voice lowering as if he’s confessing to a dark secret. “Izzie says she’s going on a date.”

“Oh,” she says, instantly relieved. “So that’s what this is about.”

“You knew?” he inquires, his tone a hair away from a shriek.

“Of course I knew,” she says, going back to folding laundry. “I thought you did, too.”

“Does this” – he gestures to his face – “look like the face of someone who knew his baby girl was going on a date? I was ambushed!”

“First of all, ambushed? That’s a stretch,” she says, setting a shirt back down in the basket before turning to him. “And second, I assumed you knew because you’ve met Bryce. He took her to Homecoming, remember? You and Thor practically interrogated the poor kid.”

He crosses his arms over his chest. “I thought they were just friends.”

“Like you and I were just friends once upon a time, right?” she says, sardonic.

He pales at her words. “She’s young,” he argues, albeit feebly.

“Our daughter is seventeen,” she volleys back. “How old were you when you started dating?”

“That’s not-” he begins to retort, but the brow she arches at him in challenge effectively ends it, and all he can do is let out another sigh. “You know what? Nevermind.”

She watches as he stomps petulantly out the door, mumbling unintelligibly as he does, before shaking her head. “Always so dramatic.”


	6. The One Where They Meet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ella1989 asked: Steve and Natasha's first meeting :)

“Hey Pep, I’m going to have to cancel tonight. There’s a lead in D.C. that- Oh, sorry. I thought Pepper was here.”

From his seat in front of the massive mahogany desk, Steve looks over his shoulder to see a woman standing by the doorway, her dark blazer a stark contrast from her icy blonde bob that falls just to her jaw. “Pepper just stepped out for a moment to get something from HR,” he explains, rising to his feet to extend his hand to her. “I’m Steve, the new layout and graphics director.”

“Natasha,” she says as she gives his hand a firm shake. “I’m a journalist, but you probably already worked that out from my entrance.” He nods, watching as she gives him a once over before intrigue colors her face. “So, Steve, what’s your favorite poison?”

He tilts his head to the side, confused. “Uh… Arsenic?”

“Because you can’t find it in the bloodstream unless you look for it specifically, right?” Natasha says, her eyes lighting up with what he thinks is amusement before she shakes her head. “That’s smart, but I meant what you like to drink.”

“Oh,” he says, smiling in slight embarrassment. “Scotch. And for the record, I’m not a serial killer.”

“Well, I can’t promise you I’m not,” she says, eliciting a chuckle from him. “And for the record, I’m asking both for when it’s my turn to buy everyone drinks and for when I need extra space in the layout for my articles.”

He scoffs, a smile nonetheless pulling at the corner of his lips. “Duly noted.”


	7. The One Where Natasha Has To Iron

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> teamromanoff asked: Nat leaving marks on Steve

“I have to unload the dryer,” Natasha says in between kisses, gasping when Steve’s only response is to hook her leg over his waist to pull her tighter against him. They had come into her room with every intention of finishing the Bolshoi documentary they had started after work yesterday, but one errant touch had led to another, and their clothes had hit the ground before they could even press play. “Steve.”

“Leave it,” he says, leaning down for another kiss.

“I can’t,” she says, giggling when he pouts. “The last time I did that I spent two hours ironing everything after.”

“The last time wasn’t my fault.” She glares at his retort, eliciting a sigh from him. “Fine,” he says, rolling off of her before sitting up. As he does, her gaze falls to his back, her eyes widening when she sees the pink marks trailing up his skin. “What?”

She looks up, meeting his inquiring stare in the mirror in front of her bed, and all she can do is point to his back. “Sorry,” she says, sinking her teeth into her bottom lip.

He cranes his neck to look over his shoulder, and to her surprise, he smirks. “Why?” he asks, a glint in his eyes as he turns to crawl back over to her, bracketing her body with his once more. “I’m not.”

She sucks in a breath when he begins to trail kisses up the side of her neck, stopping to nibble softly at her pulse before going down her jaw. But before he can get any further, and before she can let herself get carried away, she tugs softly at his hair, tipping his head back. “What am I going to do with you?”

“I think the better question…” he says, his lips curling into the most devious of smiles, “is what am I going to do _to_ you?”

Desire bubbles in her veins at the promise in his words, making her sigh. _Ironing it is_.


	8. The One With Izzie’s First Recital

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2 Anons asked: First daddy daughter dance at Isabel’s dance studio. With Steve on stage and Natasha videotaping. Obviously... Alternative: Isabel’s first dance recital. With grandpa fury and both grandmas and all of their parents' friends cheering for her. + For the drabbles, I really want to see Sarah, Nick, and Melinda interact with the figs. Please and thank you.

Steve’s chuckle causes Natasha to look up, a smirk making its way across her face when she follows his gaze to where Sarah, Melinda, and Nick sit. She couldn’t speak for Sarah, but if someone had told her that one day she would find General Fury and Colonel May at the front row of a pre-K Spring musical, miming the steps to the routine of their three-year-old granddaughter who’s dressed as a sunflower, she would have cackled in their face.

“If only the military could see this,” Natasha mutters, catching the way Steve’s lips twitch even in the darkness of the auditorium.

“Five more seconds! Thor, get the camera! Get the camera!”

Natasha rolls her eyes fondly at Jane’s whispered yells, but she only has a moment to ponder how surreal it is that their colleagues (some of whom couldn’t even make it to work on time two days in a row if they tried) had gotten here before she and Steve had when the music shifts, a tune she’s come to know by heart thanks to the millions of rehearsals Isabel had demanded they have at home. On cue, Isabel moves to the center of the stage, and she and Steve share a smile as their daughter begins her solo.

“You did so well!” Melinda, who had practically grabbed Isabel the second the show was over, exclaims.

“I can see it now,” Sarah says, her hand sweeping out before her. “Isabel Romanoff Rogers, Tony winner!”

“Mhmm,” Nick agrees with a nod, tapping Isabel on the nose and earning a giggle from the little girl. “You were the best sunflower ever!”

“They do realize that she was the only sunflower, right?” Steve asks from where they stand a few feet away.

Natasha snorts, watching as all three grandparents shower their daughter with hugs and kisses while their friends wait patiently on the side for their turn. “Like it matters.”


	9. The One Where Steve Loses His Shirts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Steve comes home from a work trip to find Nat and fig snuggled in bed

It’s a little past one in the morning when Steve finally makes it home, exhausted from a three-day trip to the West Coast. He opens the door to their bedroom, the space illuminated only by traces of streetlight peering through the small space between the curtains. But even so, the sight before him brings a smile to his face. On their bed, Natasha and Isabel lie, practically mirrors of one another as they slumber. But more amusing to him, perhaps, is their choice of nightwear – his wife in his old West Point shirt and their daughter in his tattered Dodgers one.

He makes quick work of stripping out of his suit and pulling on a pair of sweatpants before padding over to their bed, the mattress dipping under his weight when he settles down. “Hey,” Natasha whispers, her voice still heavy with sleep. “Been here long?”

“Long enough to get dressed,” he explains quietly, reaching over to lift her hand and kiss her knuckles. His eyes dart from Isabel and back to her before he smirks. “Nice pajamas.”

Natasha’s lips pull into a lazy grin. “We both missed her daddy.”

Warmth floods his chest at her words, but just as he’s about to return the sentiment, Isabel’s voice cuts in. “Momma?”

“Hey,” Natasha says, pushing the hair out of Isabel’s eyes before nodding to him. “Look who’s here.”

“Daddy?” Isabel calls out, turning to face him. “You’re home?”

“Yes, baby,” he beams, running his thumb over her cheek. “Daddy’s home. Go back to sleep, okay?”

Isabel nods, her eyes fluttering shut almost instantly, and he presses a kiss to her forehead and then to Natasha’s before he settles on his back, pulling both his girls close. There’s really no place like home.


	10. The One Where Izzie Goes To School

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> steph21108 asked: Izzie’s first day of school and she is so excited to go. I’ll leave Nat and Steve’s reactions up to you. Love all the drabbles you’ve done so far. Thank you!

“All right,” Natasha says, bending down to get to eye-level with her daughter once they’re halfway down the hall. Today is Isabel’s first day of preschool, and though the little girl has been buzzing with excitement for the last two weeks, Pepper (and the gazillion articles Steve had emailed her) had warned her about a possible meltdown at the classroom door, and ever since, she’s been determined to avert it. “Remember what we talked about, okay? Momma and Daddy will walk you to your room-”

“But we’ll be right here the second it’s time to go home,” Steve pipes in from behind her.

“Right,” she says in agreement, reaching over to dust an invisible lint off Isabel’s sleeve. “But until then, you have to stay with your teacher and all the new friends you’re going to make.”

“Okay, momma,” comes Isabel’s swift and enthusiastic reply, her backpack that’s a little too big hanging from her shoulders as she smiles from ear to ear.

“Good girl,” she says, rising to her feet and taking Isabel’s hand as the three of them resume walking down the hall. As they approach the end, they find a woman standing by the open door, her hazel eyes kind and her smile genial.

“Hi. Mrs. Romanoff Rogers, right?” the woman asks, offering out her hand. “We met at the information session. I’m Miss Jemma.”

“Yes, I remember,” she says, shaking Jemma’s hand. “And please, call me Natasha.” She gestures behind her. “This is my husband, Steve.” She waits for Steve to shake Jemma’s hand before patting Isabel’s shoulders. “And this is Isabel.”

“Hi, Miss Jemma!” Isabel greets with a wave.

“Hi, sweetie,” Jemma says. “Are you ready to learn and make new friends today?” Isabel nods excitedly, making the teacher beam. “Okay, why don’t you say goodbye to your mom and dad so you can go in and meet everyone.”

At Jemma’s words, Natasha shares a look with Steve. And for a moment, she lets all the techniques they read on how to assuage classroom anxiety run through her mind. This is it. The moment of truth they’ve both been waiting and preparing for. Isabel turns around, her big blue eyes looking up at both of them, and she braces herself for the waterworks.

“Bye, Momma! Bye, Daddy!” Isabel says, confidently walking into the classroom without so much as a second glance at both of them.

A quiet gasp slips from her lips, an amalgam of pride, amusement, and a tinge of hurt washing over her all at once. “Uh… bye?”

She looks to Steve, who’s still staring at the door in disbelief as he mutters, “Nice to know where we stand.”


	11. The One With Joey’s First Word

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2 Anons asked: Steve and Nat compete for Joey’s first word to be dada or mama + A typical morning with the Romanoff-Rogers, now with babypie Joey

“I’m going,” Natasha announces as she walks into the kitchen, prompting Steve to look up from his coffee to see her already dressed for work and rummaging through the cupboards. “Pepper said she just dropped off the girls at school. I’ll pick Izzie up this afternoon before heading to your mom’s for dinner. I also told Melinda you have to be at the gallery by ten, so…”

He gets up from his seat at the breakfast bar, and her words immediately cease when she feels him snake his arms around her from behind. “Hey,” he says, dropping a kiss to where her neck and shoulder meet. “Breathe, baby.”

She lets out a sigh, relaxing into his touch before facing him. “Sorry,” she says, “big meeting today.”

He nods in understanding. Between juggling their careers and raising two kids, their lives have required a closely monitored schedule to work, and he knows better than anyone how easy it is to get swept in it. He reaches behind her, his fingers wrapping around the travel tumbler she was looking for before handing it to her. “You’ll do well, Nat. You always do.”

“Thank you,” she says, grateful to find the tumbler already filled. She rises on the tips of her toes, pressing her lips to his. “I have to go. I love you.”

“I love you,” he echoes, leaning down for another kiss when a loud gurgle interrupts them. They both turn, laughing when they find their eleven-month-old staring at them from his highchair with Cheerios scattered all over the tray.

“We love you too, bud,” Natasha coos, walking over to dust a kiss to Joey’s head. “Can you say bye? Say bye, ma-ma.”

“Oh no you don’t,” he says, pointing a finger at her. “Izzie’s first word was mama. His is going to be dada.”

Natasha scoffs. “You can’t control what his first word is going to be, Steve.”

He turns his chin up in defiance, watching as his wife just rolls her eyes and walks out of the kitchen. When the elevator dings, he turns back to his son. “You can say da-da, right?” Joey smiles, flashing all four of his teeth. “We’ll work on it,” he concedes. “You want more cereal?” He picks up the box, only for it to slip from his grip. “Shit.”

“Shit!”

His eyes grow wide.


	12. The One With Izzie’s First ER Visit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Isabel’s first trip to the ER

_You’ll understand when you’re a parent_. Steve had heard the phrase enough times from his mother that he could recite it from heart. But today, as he stands at the doorway of Isabel’s hospital room, he finally gets it.

They were at work when it happened, and he swears that the distraught expression on Natasha’s face as she burst into his office will haunt him forever. The action alone brought him to his feet. His wife rarely barges into his office, so for her to do so on the day she knows he has an important conference call could only mean that the situation is dire.

“They’re taking Izzie to the ER.”

The mention of their four-year-old’s name alone had him grabbing for his coat, and within moments, he and Natasha were in the back of the car as Happy floored it to Stark Medical. The call from the school nurse had been sparse in detail – a fact his wife had made sure to let the school administration know was highly unacceptable as she called every connection she had in search for more answers. He reached over to clasp her hand, to offer her some comfort even if he himself didn’t feel a shred of it, but his touch did little.

Christine was already there to greet them when they got to the emergency room, explaining everything from what happened to the treatment they had started. As it turned out, their fears were worse than the reality. Isabel had fallen from the jungle gym, but luckily, the gash on her temple only required a few stitches - though that hadn’t stopped them from engulfing her in their arms as tightly as they dared upon seeing her.

“She’s going to be okay,” Sarah says, rubbing a hand comfortingly up his back as she comes to stand next to him.

“I know,” he says, keeping his eyes on Isabel, who Natasha hasn’t let go of since they got here two hours ago. “Doctor Palmer said everything’s fine. They just want to keep her in for observation since she hit her head.” He turns to his mother. “Hey, ma?” Sarah looks up at him questioningly, and he lets out a long and winded breath. “I’m sorry about Kabul. For not telling you when I blew my spleen out.”

Sarah smiles softly, wrapping an arm around his waist. “It’s okay, darling.”


	13. The One With Natasha’s Opinion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: A follow up to the first meeting, where Natasha shares her opinion on the new guy with pepper?

“Sorry to interrupt,” Steve says as he pokes his head into Pepper’s office, “but I have the updated fonts and templates for the anniversary issue and I know you wanted to see them asap.”

“Oh, yes,” Pepper says excitedly. “Please, come in.”

Natasha eyes him as he strolls inside, and he smiles to her in greeting. “Hey.”

“Hey,” she echoes. “Are you coming to Thor’s game night later?”

“I was threatened with revoked access to the break room if I miss it,” he says, handing Pepper the tablet. “So yes, I’ll be there.”

“You know there’s another break room, right?” Natasha says, her eyebrows furrowing.

“Yeah, but apparently someone put their tuna sandwich in the fridge two weeks ago and it’s still there,” he explains, the sideway glance Pepper gives him making him cringe. “Or so I’ve heard…”

Pepper shakes her head, handing him back the tablet. “These all look fantastic, Steve. I’ll have everyone email you the content by Wednesday.”

“Great,” he says before nodding to each of them. “Have a nice day.”

They both watch as he leaves, and the second the door closes behind him, Pepper’s eyes dart to her. “So, what do you think of him?”

“Steve?” she clarifies, to which Pepper nods. “That depends. Are you asking me as his coworker or as your best friend?”

“Both,” Pepper says as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

“Well, as his coworker, I think the fact that he revamped the entire look of the paper in one issue is phenomenal and speaks to his incredible work ethic,” she says earnestly. “But speaking to you as my best friend…” She pauses, letting her mind wander to the handful of conversations she’s had with Steve since he started working here. “He seems like a really nice guy, you know? Decent, definitely, but also a little lonely.”

Pepper nods at her assessment before an impish smile crosses her lips. “And…”

“And god bless whoever gets to leave marks on that back,” she finishes with a smirk.


	14. The One With Karaoke Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: How did Natasha and Steve become good friends?

“Do you think they noticed that we left?” Steve asks, setting his shot glass back on the table.

Natasha snorts from her seat across the booth. Ever since karaoke was added to their list of after work activities, their coworkers have been hellbent on outdoing one another, resulting in some questionable performances. “Unlikely. Do you think we should get another round?”

“That depends.”

“On?”

“How miserable you want to feel tomorrow.”

“It’s going to be miserable anyway.” Intrigue colors Steve’s face at her words, so she goes on. “Sitwell from finance is sitting in on our section meeting. He’s an ass. You’ll see.” He nods in understanding, a comfortable silence falling over them as she twirls the salt shaker between her fingers. “So…” she says eventually. “Aren’t you going to ask me why I was hanging out in an alley?”

“I assumed you were doing serial killer things,” he quips, making her smile even as she rolls her eyes. “Or that Darcy and Jane’s duet of I Will Survive became too much for you.”

“Believe it or not, that’s one of the tame performances,” she says, watching as his eyebrows shoot up to his hairline. “Oh, yeah. You should see Thor’s rendition of Never Gonna Give You Up.”

“I think I’ll take your word for it,” he says, taking a sip of water before looking back at her. “You don’t have to talk about it. I’m more than happy to just sit here, drink, and shit on our coworkers’ singing if that’s what you want.”

“Sounds like you’re familiar with the feeling,” she observes.

His expression grows contemplative, but it lasts but a second before he shrugs. “I’ll show you my cards if you show me yours.”

“Deal,” she says, shocked at how quickly her answer had come. She’s not much of a talker, Pepper being the only person she really confides in, but something about the earnestness of the man before her makes her want to reciprocate. “The guy I was dating? Called to say that he was done with me for, and I quote, having a bigger hard on for my work than I had for him. And I think I’m a terrible person for being surprisingly okay with that.” She nods to him. “You go.”

“Okay,” he says, leaning back against the leather of the booth. “Four months ago, my fiancée left me at the altar… But not before she told me she was pregnant. With someone else’s child. And I think I’m an idiot for still missing her.”

For a moment, she sits there, searching his eyes for any indication that he might be kidding, but all she finds is the hurt that’s been there all along that she’s only now able to recognize. “Okay, you win,” she says, eliciting a grin from him. “We’re definitely getting another round.”


	15. The One Where They Go To Disney World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Given how crazy Isabel is with Disney movies, they have to take her to Disney world. For Steve, it makes it seem like going to Toys r us was a walk in the park.

“I can see the castle, Daddy! I see it! I see it!”

Steve chuckles softly at Isabel, her excitement palpable. Today is their first day at Disney World, and if he and Natasha thought that their daughter was buzzing on the plane ride over, it’s nothing compared to how she can barely sit still astride his shoulders now as they walk through the gates of Magic Kingdom.

“Are you sure you don’t want to wear these ears?” he asks, letting go of one of Isabel’s ankles to point at the headband he’s sporting. “There’s a big red bow and everything.”

“No thanks,” Isabel says, “it doesn’t match my outfit.”

He steals a glance at Natasha, her own pair of Mickey Mouse ears resting on her head, to find an amused smile on her lips. He’s not sure which aunt or uncle had refined their four-year-old’s sartorial choices, but he decides to let it slide. Even though Isabel had begged them for Minnie Mouse ears when they were preparing for this trip, on a day like today where his daughter is beside herself for being in the Happiest Place on Earth, he’s more than willing to pick his battles.

“All right, kiddo,” he says, lifting Isabel off his shoulders and setting her on the ground. “Remember what momma and I told you?”

“Uh…” Isabel trails, her eyes everywhere but on him. “Don’t stray.”

“Even if…” he prods.

“Even if- Cinderella!”

With a squeal, Isabel takes off running, and he watches as she launches herself into the arms of the cast member in the pale blue ballgown a few feet away before letting out a sigh. One day, they’ll be able to go on a trip without having to use Tony’s GPS tags to keep an eye on their daughter. But today is not that day.

“Told you we should’ve gotten a leash.” He rolls his eyes at Natasha’s retort, turning to find a smug look on her face. “Here,” she says, reaching to take his headband as she hands him hers. “It doesn’t match your outfit, either.”

She begins to stroll towards Isabel, and he shakes his head before putting the mouse ears back on. _This is going to be a long day._


	16. The One With Izzie’s First Easter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hopeandserenity asked: Steve, Nat, and Izzie’s first Easter. Plugging this in for next week!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Easter to all who celebrate! And to everyone, I hope you’re hanging in there and keeping safe. :-)

“Everyone listen up,” Steve says as their friends and family huddle around. He’s not entirely sure how their friends had learned about their family outing to let Isabel experience her first Easter egg hunt, and though he and Natasha don’t really mind the extra company, they also don’t want a scene to erupt in the middle of Central Park. “Izzie’s not all that steady on her feet yet, so just scope out the eggs, point her in their direction, and let her pick it up. Got it?”

“But most importantly,” Natasha adds from his side, eyeing each and every person in the group as she holds Isabel, dressed for the occasion in bunny ears, in her arms. “Do not let her get trampled.”

“No one is touching a hair on that precious head. I’ll make sure of it,” Thor all but swears to Natasha before turning to him. “But as for your plan, I do not like it. The strategy is too… how should we say… soft. We’ll lose.”

“Everyone in the group is under the age of five,” he emphasizes. “And winning isn’t the objective here. She’s barely one-”

“No, I’m with Thor on this,” Bucky says, disregarding his explanation. “I think I should run ahead to do recon on the positioning with Thor trailing behind me to watch my six and to block any interferences. Then Wanda, you can push Izzie in the stroller and lead her right to the target. The rest of you can spread out to guard the others until we can get to them.”

Thor’s eyes light up. “Yes, exactly! Don’t let any of the other suckers get to them before we do.”

“Cause a distraction if need be,” Jane concludes, high-fiving with Maria.

“But who’s going to make sure some kid doesn’t try to take from Boss Baby’s basket?” Darcy asks, prompting Stephen and Christine to volunteer to fill the task.

Steve turns to Natasha as they both stand listening to their friends refine their strategy. “We’re going to get disqualified, aren’t we?”

Natasha sighs in exasperation, turning to dust a kiss to Isabel’s temple. “Don’t worry, fig,” she says as Isabel observes their surroundings. “Next year, we’ll take aunt Pepper up on her offer to stay in Malibu. She won’t let the crazies in.”


	17. The One With The Accident

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ella1989 asked: This may be too much but I'd really like to read where Steve has a short term memory loss and his last memory is before the events of 'A Little Favor'. If this is too much just ignore it.

The moment had played out like a scene from countless movies – the character gets a call, the voice on the other end asking if this is mister or missus something or other, before delivering devastating news. Only this time, Natasha didn’t have the luxury of being a spectator in someone else’s tragedy. Today, the character was her, and the call had come just as she and Isabel had gotten home from an afternoon at the park.

“Mrs. Rogers, your husband was in an accident.”

Everything beyond that point is just a blur. Somewhere between scooping Isabel into her arms and clamoring into the first cab that drove by, she had called Sarah, though for the life of her, she can’t remember what she’d said. The only thing she can recall with a haunting clarity is what the doctor had told her when she’d arrived at the hospital: Steve was in surgery and in critical condition; he had pushed a pedestrian out of the way, getting hit by the speeding car in the process.

That was eleven hours ago. The doctors were able to repair a few broken bones and the laceration to Steve’s liver, but the swelling in his brain was still keeping him out cold. Their family and friends had all come in droves, offering her words of encouragement and support, but the only solace she could really find in it all was knowing that Isabel would be safe with both her grandmas tonight. She could barely stomach the sight of Steve bruised and bandaged, and though their daughter is only two, she doesn’t want this memory of her father etched into her memory.

A sigh escapes her at the thought, and from her seat at Steve’s bedside, she brings his hand up to her face as she lets the tears fall free for the first time today. Sometimes, just sometimes, she wishes that he’d be a little more selfish. If not for his sake, then for their daughter’s.

“Natasha?”

She looks up, and a wave of relief crashes over her when she sees Steve’s eyes flutter open. “Steve,” she whispers, moving to wrap her arms around him with painstaking care. “Oh, thank God. I thought Izzie and I lost you.” She pulls away, squeezing his hand as if to reaffirm to herself that he was here, alive. “I’ll get the doctor.”

He pulls on her hand before she can leave, and when she looks back, she finds him blinking in confusion. “Who’s Izzie?”

She freezes, her chest tightening. “What?”

“Natasha!”

The sound of her name being called coupled with the light jolt to her shoulder startles her awake, and her eyes fly open to see Steve staring at her in concern from the other side of the bed. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, it-” she begins to say when her words are interrupted by a whine.

“Ssh,” Steve says, and she watches as he reaches between them to pat Isabel’s back. “We’re here, baby girl. We’re here.”

He looks back at her expectantly, but she shakes her head. “It was just a dream.”


	18. The One With The Zucchini

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: for the drabble: how the couple answered (or not) Isabel's question as to where Joey came from p.s. Kudos to you! We have something to look forward to as always

“Momma, can you help me open this?”

Natasha looks away from the morning news to see Isabel stroll into their living room before setting her coin bank down on the coffee table. “Is it full already?” she questions, reaching over to give the plastic pig a shake. “I don’t know, fig. It still feels a little light.”

“But I want to see if I have enough money,” Isabel explains, jutting out her lower lip. “Please, momma?”

“For what?” Steve asks, scooting forward in the lounge chair adjacent the couch.

Isabel shrugs. “Grandpa Nick is taking me to the farmers’ market. I want to buy a zucchini.”

“Oh?” Steve says, and momentarily, Natasha looks away from him and Isabel to work on opening the piggy bank. “Is that what you want for dinner tonight? We can have Pasta Primavera.”

“No,” Isabel replies instantly, “I want you and momma to hide it.”

Natasha successfully pulls out the pig’s rubber stopper just as Isabel says the words, but she ignores the loud clatter as a deluge of quarters spill out onto the table to look up to see their daughter staring innocently at them. She turns to Steve, sharing a wide-eyed look with him before turning back to Isabel. “What?”

Isabel lets out a long and winded sigh. “Uncle Tony said if I wanted a baby sister like Maria, you and Daddy have to play hide the zucchini.”

“Izzie,” Steve begins, shifting in his seat. “Uncle Tony-”

“Where do you hide the zucchini, Daddy?”

Steve turns to Natasha, his mouth agape. “Uh…”

“Where’s my Izzie Bear?”

“Grandpa Nick!” Isabel exclaims, her eyes lighting up as she runs towards their foyer, and prompting both Steve and Natasha to huff out a breath in relief once she’s out of earshot.

“What are the chances she’ll forget about this when she gets home?” Natasha ponders, albeit tepidly.

Steve's lips press into a line. “I’m going to kill Tony.”

“Yeah, well, get in line,” Natasha says with a roll of her eyes. Her gaze falls to the table, and her eyebrows furrow when she notices the scrunched up bills amidst the sea of coins. She picks one up, unfolding a five. “Where did she get all this money?”


	19. The One Where Natasha Gets Drunk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Drunken confessions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by a Tumblr quote by hxpelesslx and takes place between chapters 4 and 5 of A Little Favor

“You smell good.”

“I definitely smell better than that cab,” Steve deadpans as he guides Natasha to her bed, sitting her at the edge before kneeling down by her feet to remove her shoes.

“Told you we should’ve walked,” she says in a sing-song voice, letting out a little snort.

He looks up at the sound to find her laughing with a hand over her mouth, and he has to roll his lips to stave off the amused smile threatening to break out on his face. They had gone out with their coworkers to celebrate her article reaching a record number of hits, and though he wasn’t sure what to expect when he agreed to take her home after Pepper had asked him to, he’s almost certain it wasn’t this. Never in his wildest dreams would he have bet on Natasha Romanoff being a happy drunk. “You walk twenty blocks in these heels?” he says, holding one up in front of her. “Goodluck.”

She giggles, leaning forward until their noses are touching. “Boo!”

“Okay, Casper,” he says, chuckling as he rises to his feet. “Time for bed.”

“Aren’t you going to stay with me?” she practically whines as she leans back against the pillows and he pulls the comforter over her.

Her words bring him to a pause. In all honesty, he had thought about it. And, knowing how much she hates her outside clothes on her bed, he’d thought about changing her into some pajamas, too. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time they’ve shared a bed or seen the other in their underwear. But she’s always been a willing participant in those instances, and clearly, she isn’t in any state to make decisions now. He reaches over, tucking a loose tendril of hair behind her ear. “I’ll be on the couch if you need anything, okay?”

“Hmm… ‘kay,” she whispers as she turns onto her side.

He waits for her eyes to fall shut before making his way over to her bathroom, retrieving a glass of water and two Aspirin and setting it down on her nightstand. He’s about to turn away when he hears her call out to him. “Hey, Steve?”

“Yeah, Nat?”

“I like you,” she says, her words clear as day as her eyes flutter open and a lazy grin crosses her lips. “More than I planned to.”

He smiles, bending to press a kiss to her forehead. “Sweet dreams, Nat.”


	20. The One With Steve's Patience

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Natasha being a tease to Steve or vice versa :P

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Continued from chapter 4

“Starting this month, a hundred percent of the proceeds from the gallery will fund after school art programs for children around the state…”

Natasha’s eyes sweep across the table as Steve discusses his latest project, finding each and every person listening intently to her husband’s every word. Not that she could blame them; he’s undoubtedly captivating when he’s talking about causes he’s passionate about. And at the back of her mind, she knows this is precisely why Pepper had seated them with the Governor and his aides at this fundraiser instead of at the livelier one with all their friends and coworkers.

That’s not to say that she does not enjoy listening to Steve talk, though. She does, so much so that she had signed up to spend the rest of her life in conversation with him. But unlike the small crowd before them, her husband’s golden heart isn’t news to her. Which is why, as he lays out his latest initiative, she does not feel terribly about testing his other virtues – namely, his patience.

He’s in the middle of citing statistics when she places a hand on his knee, and he shoots her a quick smile before looking back at the Governor. “The studies are very clear in that-”

The hand she trails up his thigh causes Steve to stutter, but he regains his composure quickly and continues his train of thought when it stills. Her lips twitch, and she reaches for her drink to hide her smile, catching the way Steve sits straighter from the corner of her eye.

“What inspired you to be a champion for children and the arts?” the Governor questions just as she begins to move her hand again.

“Our daughter” – he pauses as if to smile at her, but really it’s to show her the warning in his eyes and to clasp his hand over the one she now has lingering on the inside of his thigh – “Isabel is three now, and she’s beginning to show a deeper interest in the matter.”

“Oh, you must be so elated! Both as her father and as an artist,” an aide pipes in.

“He’s already teaching her all the tricks,” she says, turning to smirk at Steve as she pulls her hand free to innocently caress his face. “He’s so good with her. So patient.”

“Well, I look forward to seeing Isabel’s exhibit one day,” the Governor’s wife says. “Excuse us one moment, won’t you?”

Steve nods politely, watching the couple leave before turning to her. “Just so you know,” he says, leaning closer, “when we get home, I’m taking you up against the first surface I touch.” He dusts a kiss to her cheek before pulling away. “First with you in this dress, and then without it.”

The promise in his stare makes her swallow hard, and as another attendee draws him into conversation, she bites her lip. _Mission accomplished._


	21. The One Where Izzie Is A Big Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Steve & Nat the first time Izzy doesn’t want to be tucked in anymore?

Natasha pokes her head into Isabel’s room, feeling a little crestfallen when she finds the little girl fast asleep. The rational side of her, as small as it is at the moment, acknowledges that she’s being ridiculous. She isn’t overly sentimental by nature, and she’s usually the first one to tease Steve about obsessively documenting Isabel’s milestones. But even so, she finds that she still feels inexplicably disarmed by the night’s turn of events.

It was fifteen minutes before Isabel’s bedtime when she and Steve had walked into her bedroom, asking her which book she had picked out for her nightly bedtime story, when their barely four-year-old had given them a shrug.

“No thanks, momma,” Isabel had said, climbing into her bed. “I’m a big girl now.”

The proclamation had broken her heart and filled her with pride all at once, and the way Steve’s lips parted only to press back together as he tried to find the right words, showed her that he felt the same way. But with a single glance at one another, they had come to a silent agreement that their emotions notwithstanding, they wouldn’t interfere in their daughter’s newfound interest in independence.

It was with reluctance and a heavy heart that they had each kissed Isabel goodnight, listening in both intrigue and despair through the monitor as their daughter drifted off to sleep. And though that was over an hour ago, she finds that she still can’t wrap her head around how easy it had been for Isabel to forgo a nightly ritual that had been in place for the last four years.

“Nat,” Steve says, and as she turns sheepishly to see him coming down the hall, she finds that despite his teasing smile, his eyes are filled with understanding. “That’s the third time you’ve checked on her. Come to bed, baby.”

A sigh falls from her lips as he opens his arms up to her and she closes the distance between them. “She’s still our baby girl, right?” she asks, looking up at him.

“Always,” he says without missing a beat, leaning down to kiss her forehead. “Even when she doesn’t want to be.”


	22. The One With The View

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2 Anons asked: First trip to the beach with Isabel + Team bonding activity with the coworkers

“How are you not on top of him right now?”

Natasha follows Jane’s line of sight to see her looking down the shore to where Steve, Tony, Thor, and Strange have teamed up to keep Isabel and Maria entertained before smirking. She couldn’t remember the last time she thought Tony had a good idea, but as she sits sprawled out on the sand with their coworkers, she has to admit that his suggestion that the company outing be to the beach isn’t half bad – especially when she gets to watch her husband chase their two-year old around shirtless. “You get used to it.”

“Do you really?” Darcy asks over the lip of her Margarita glass. “Because if I had a husband that looked like that, I’d let him break my back like a glow stick.”

“Darcy!” Jane, Hill, and Christine squeal in unison, attempting to sound scandalized despite the smiles on their faces while Pepper just shakes her head.

She raises an eyebrow at them as she reaches for her Piña Colada. “Who’s to say he doesn’t?”

Her friends’ eyes widen, and she takes a sip of her drink as they begin to bombard her with questions. With the exception of Pepper, she’s always been notoriously tight-lipped with them when it comes to her relationships, and though she’s gotten more comfortable with being outspoken about that part of her life since marrying Steve, she doesn’t make a habit out of making such comments. Their inquiries begin to border on raunchy when she hears a voice call out to her, and it’s one she’s become so exceptionally attuned to that she turns without so much as a second thought.

“Mama! Mama!”

The image of Isabel toddling over to her in her little blue bathing suit with Steve trailing just a few steps behind curls her lips into a blinding smile. She opens her arms up, laughing when her daughter launches herself into them. “Hi, fig,” she greets, peppering the little girl’s cheeks with kisses. “Did you have fun with dada and your uncles?”

Isabel nods, her pigtails swinging as she pulls away to hand her a seashell. “For you, mama.”

“Oh, I love it!” she exclaims, making Isabel beam. “Thank you, baby.”

A shadow casts over them as Isabel goes in for another hug, and she looks up to see Steve standing by the edge of the beach mat. He points a thumb over his shoulder. “She really loves the view down there.”

“Funny,” she says as she rises, placing Isabel on her hip before looking suggestively at him. “So does mama.”

“Oh?” he asks, intrigued.

She smirks. “Oh, yeah-”

“Okay…” Darcy interrupts, suddenly beside her as she takes Isabel and points between her and Steve. “You see this, Boss Baby? This is why you exist right now and why we might go home with another you.”

She watches as Steve blushes, but she can only shrug as Darcy walks away. Maybe she isn’t used to it, after all.


	23. The One With The Cupcakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2 Anons asked: Steve and Nat being tired parents + A time Izzy was too much like Steve or too much like Nat

Steve thought he knew what being tired felt like. After all, he had gone on two tours with the Army, and even his new profession as artist and curator required him to burn the midnight oil most days of the week. And yet, in spite of all those experiences that had seen him endure everything from major injuries to sleep deprivation, he’s learning that none of those could hold a candle to how draining it is trying to get his wound up four-year-old to go to sleep.

“How many cupcakes did she eat?” Natasha asks as they both stand by the door of Isabel’s bedroom, watching in horror as their daughter bounces up and down on her bed. It’s well past one in the morning, and they’d already lost the wherewithal to scold the girl yet again on the dangers of jumping on her mattress.

He sighs, partly in exhaustion and partly because he doesn’t really know the answer. They had attended Maria’s fifth birthday this afternoon, and with all the aunts, uncles, and grandparents that had wrestled Isabel away from them, they’re lucky if cupcakes are the only treat they let their daughter binge on. He runs a hand over his face, pressing the heel of his hand into his eye. “Who knows.”

“On the bright side, at least her room is carpeted,” Natasha notes, and when he turns to shoot her a questioning look, he finds her leaning against the frame in what he surmises is an attempt to keep herself upright. She shrugs. “She has to crash at some point.”

“We can’t let her sleep on the floor!” he says incredulously.

She arches an eyebrow at him. “You got a better idea?”

His jaw sets at that, because in all honesty, he really doesn’t. Since they got home, they’ve tried everything from a warm bath to rocking her to sleep in hopes that it would calm her down, but it’s all been in vain. “Izzie, baby,” he coos. “Momma and Daddy want to go to bed. Aren’t you tired?”

Isabel giggles, throwing her arms up in the air. “I can do this all day!”

His face falls, and from his periphery, he sees Natasha turn to glare at him. Her lips part to spew what he can only assume is a snarky remark, but he holds a finger up. “Don’t.”


	24. The One With Subway Cooties

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> princess-evans-addict asked: Hi! Could I request a tickle fight with Steve and Nat as a Hanging by a Moment part? I don't know if I phrased that right hahaha but thank you! Hope you're having an amazing day + Anonymous asked: Natasha does something nice for Steve after he had a bad day.

It’s barely five in the afternoon when Steve enters their apartment, not feeling even the least bit guilty about having thrown in the towel earlier than usual. He always knew Pepper was exceptional at her job, but after being on back-to-back calls with the board of Stark Industries to discuss the expansion of the gallery, he has an even more profound respect for the woman. Going toe to toe with people who cared more about profit than anything else is downright exhausting, and he’s not sure how Pepper does this every single day.

He’s made it halfway into the living room when he stops dead in his tracks. Their home is quiet – too quiet – he realizes, and the fact that he’s made it as far as he has without either kid barreling towards him is nothing short of strange. “Nat?” he calls out as he scans the room, his eyebrows furrowing when he spots a box of pizza on the coffee table alongside a stack of his sketchpads from the den. “You here?”

There’s a telltale click of a door closing followed by light footfalls, and he turns towards the hall to see Natasha coming from their bedroom. “Hey,” she says, “didn’t think you’d be home for another hour.”

“Left early,” he says simply before nodding towards their coffee table. “What’s all this?”

She shrugs. “You sounded upset over the phone, so when your mom asked if she could take the kids for the night, I figured since I was in the neighborhood-”

“You’d just pick up my favorite pizza and carry it in a crowded subway for eleven stops during rush hour?” he finishes for her, unable to keep the grin from forming on his lips.

“Nine stops, actually,” she corrects. “I took the express.”

“Did you now,” he muses, his head tilting to the side as he takes her in. “In this outfit? Not that I don’t like it. Actually, I’ve been meaning to tell you just how much I do since I saw you put it on this morning.”

“Well, that’s a shame,” she teases. “Because that pizza and the beer chilling in the fridge are for you. But this?” – she pauses, pointing towards the lace of her bustier peeking out from under her robe – “this was for the hot guy I met on the subway while carrying your pizza.”

His eyebrow quirks up in amusement, and he holds her gaze as he steps forward. “That so?”

“Oh, yes,” she affirms with a smirk, taking a step back. “You should have seen him. He was so- _Steve_!”

She squeals when he pounces forward, taking off running with him hot on her heels. They circle the couch twice, their movements made less graceful by their incessant giggling, before he finally lengthens his strides, wrapping his arms around her waist as he lifts her to him.

“Tell me about him, Nat,” he prods as he lays her flat on the couch, bracketing her body with his. He pokes her sides, making her squirm and cackle. “I really want to know!”

“Okay! Okay!” she says between laughs, making his hands still. “I lied. There was no hot guy. But I was on the subway, so I was going to jump in the shower until you walked in.”

He laughs, leaning down to press a kiss to her lips. “For the record,” he says when they pull away. “You’re the only person with subway cooties I’d ever make out with.”

“I better be the only person you make out with, period,” she says, narrowing her eyes at him even as her lips tug up in a smile. She reaches up, caressing his face with her hand. “Bad day?”

He shakes his head, kissing the inside of her palm. “Not anymore.”


	25. The One With The Pasta

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2 Anons asked: Romanogers + pregnancy cravings + How they chose Isabel's name

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Takes place between chapters 9 and 10 of A Little Favor

The glowing digits on the bedside clock read 2:03 a.m. when Steve wakes up to an empty bed, but he doesn’t have to think twice to know where Natasha might be. Quietly, he rises, padding over to the kitchen to find his instincts proven right when he sees her rummaging through his cupboards. He smiles, leaning against the doorway. She’s well into her second trimester now, and with her cravings at its peak, it isn’t unusual for her to be up at this hour.

It’s with a frustrated sigh that she pushes one of the cupboards closed, and this time, he’s unable to bite back a chuckle. “Want help?”

At his question, Natasha turns, her expression growing sheepish when she sees him smiling at her. “Did the noise wake you?”

“Not as much as you not being in bed did,” he says, pushing off the frame to make his way over to her. “Are you looking for the ice cream scoop?”

She smiles at the knowing look he shoots her way. Pistachio ice cream drenched in milk has been her most frequent craving as of late, so he’s surprised when she shakes her head. “Actually, I was looking for a pot,” she says, her lower lip jutting out as she adds, “I really want some pasta.”

“Pasta?” he asks, laughing at the enthusiastic nod she gives him. “Okay, that’s a new one. Well, you’re in luck because I made extra the other night.” He points to the stool in front of the island. “Go and sit, and I’ll heat some up for you.”

“Steve, no,” she says almost instantly. “You have work tom-”

Her words dissolve into a giggle when he wraps his arms around her, gently lifting her onto the countertop. He smirks. “Now was that so hard?”

She rolls her eyes as he walks over to the fridge. “You know, if you keep spoiling me like this, I may never go back to my apartment.”

“Are you trying to threaten me with a good time?” he challenges as he pulls out a Tupperware and she smiles.

“So, I was thinking about baby names…” she says while he scoops some pasta into a bowl. “I know we said we’d wait till the baby’s born to pick one, but how do you feel about adding Isabel to the list for a girl?”

“Isabel?” he asks as he pops the dish into the microwave. “Like your birth mom?”

“Yeah,” she says, biting her lip as she shrugs. “I mean, I know I didn’t really know her, but from what Melinda and Nick say, she seemed so strong and fearless, so I just thought that maybe-”

“Natasha,” he says, cutting her off. “I think it’s a great idea.”

She beams. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” he confirms just as the microwave beeps. He takes the bowl out, setting it down next to her with a fork before grinning. “Leftover Bolognese, as demanded by the little fig.”

She claps her hands before bringing a forkful to her mouth. “Oh, my God,” she all but moans, her eyes falling shut as absolute elation fills her expression. “So good.”

He laughs, shaking his head. Now there’s a smile he doesn’t mind seeing for the rest of his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 


	26. The One With The Basketball Team

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Steve and Nat deciding to have another baby. Really want to read this convo since it was tricky when she had Izzie.

“Stephen Strange sending pictures of his son in the group chat. Did you ever think we’d see the day?”

Steve laughs as he settles down next to Natasha in bed, smiling at the picture she shows him of their friends’ newborn in a Stark Daily onesie. “I always thought Thor and Jane would be the next ones to have kids,” he muses before sighing. “Remember when Izzie was this little?”

“You mean when she’d let us hug her for as long as we wanted without complaining?” she asks.

“Those were the days,” he laments. “Now we’re lucky if we can get five seconds in before she says it’s too long for a big girl hug.”

Steve’s rueful smile as he says the words catches her attention. He hasn’t said anything to her, but the look on his face the other night when they had gone to meet the newest Strange coupled with the longing flickering in his eyes right now says it all. It’s clear to her that she’s not the only one that’s been yearning to expand their family, especially now that Isabel’s growing increasingly independent with each day that passes. One of them just needs the courage to say it aloud.

“Well, maybe the next one will be more huggable,” she says, taking the plunge and biting her lip as she gauges his reaction. The corner of his mouth quirks up, but otherwise, he says nothing, and carefully, she watches for a shift in his expression. “Steve,” she prods when his silence goes on a beat too long. “Do you not want more kids?”

“I have more than I could have ever asked for,” he says quietly.

She swallows the lump in her throat. “That’s a non-answer.”

“Natasha,” he says emphatically as he turns to her. “Of course I want more kids with you. I would have a basketball team with you if that’s what you wanted.” Her eyebrows rise at that, but the pain that colors his features stifles her words. He shakes his head. “But when Izzie was born and you almost- I… I told myself if you came back to us, I would never ask for anything ever again.”

“Hey,” she whispers, moving to straddle his lap as her hands come up to cup his face. “Look at me.” He obliges her, and she runs her thumbs over his cheeks. “That was an extraordinary set of circumstances-”

“I can’t lose you,” he says instantly. “I couldn’t then, and now more than ever-”

“I know,” she reassures him with a nod. “And I won’t gamble this time. But Steve, we can’t let fear dictate our decisions. That’s not how we promised to live.”

He sighs, his shoulders sagging. “You’re right.”

“Look, I’m not saying we should throw caution to the wind,” she says. “We’ll talk to Helen, see what she thinks. And if it’s really not in our cards… Well, there are other options.”

His eyes widen. “You’re not going to ask Strange for a favor, are you?”

She shrugs. “I mean, now that you mention it, he does have great cheekbones- _Steve_!” She squeals when he pushes forward, flipping them over so she’s flat on her back with him hovering over her. She smirks. “So, basketball team, huh?”

He tips his head back in laughter. “No?”

“No,” she says, crinkling her nose. “Well, maybe ask me without a shirt on.”


	27. The One Where Natasha's In Charge (Of Everyone)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Steve comforting Natasha after a bad day

The sight of Natasha staring blankly into space as she sits in the bath causes Steve to pause by the doorway. Even through the steam filling their bathroom, he can see the trail of tears down her cheeks, and his gaze falls to the ground as his heart clenches in his chest.

“Is she asleep?”

He looks up to see Natasha still staring straight ahead. “Out like a light,” he says, making his way over before taking a seat on the floor by the side of the tub. “But she did want me to tell her momma not to be sad anymore.”

Natasha turns to him, her expression pained. “I was hoping if I kept her talking during dinner she wouldn’t notice.”

“She’s your daughter, Nat,” he kids in an attempt to lighten the mood. “She sees right through poker faces.” Natasha’s eyes fall shut at his words, and his breath gets caught in his throat when a fresh batch of tears fall from her eyes and a sob wracks her body. “Hey,” he reaches over, covering the hand she has resting on the lip of the tub with his own, “talk to me, baby.”

“It’s just… I’m used to taking hits, I am,” she says, her voice cracking. “But now they’re hitting me in the one place I can never be bulletproof.”

“Natasha,” he says, giving her hand a squeeze, knowing full well that this is about the front cover of the Daily’s competitor this morning. To say that their status as public figures has taken a lot of getting used to since she was appointed editor-in-chief and his exhibit launched at the gallery, would be an understatement; there are days where the scrutiny is just downright overwhelming. And while it wouldn’t be the first time the tabloids have tried to disparage his wife’s character, today they had gone as far as to question her fitness as a mother.

“I worry that they’re right,” she whispers, swallowing hard. “Because how could anyone, much less me, be worthy of being a mom to someone as sweet and kind as our daughter?”

He sighs. “Okay,” he says, reaching into his back pocket to take out his phone. He scrolls through the screen before handing it to her. She looks questioningly at him, but he just nods in encouragement. “This is from this morning. Just watch.”

She takes his phone, and despite her tears, he watches as her lips immediately curl into a smile when she presses play on the video and Isabel’s voice fills the room. “My name is Izzie Romanoff Rogers and when I grow up, I want to be just like my momma.” Natasha gasps, her hand flying to her mouth just as the teacher asks Isabel why. “Because she’s strong, kind, smart, loving, and my uncle Tony says she’s in charge of everyone!”

They both burst out laughing, and Natasha shakes her head. “We have to limit the time she spends with Tony.”

He hums in agreement, taking his phone from her before cupping her face in his hand. “The only opinion you should ever worry about is that little girl’s, and I’m pretty sure she thinks you’re a rockstar. The rest of them?” He shrugs. “They’re just buttheads.”

She snorts. “Buttheads? That’s the best you can do?”

“Hey, you’re the journalist, not me,” he says, rising to his feet. “Now, move over. I’m coming in.”

“Steve!” she exclaims, laughing as water sloshes out of the tub as he settles behind her. “You’re still dressed!”

“I don’t care,” he says, “because you’re right. Our daughter is sweet, and she also told me to hug her momma until she isn’t sad anymore.”

She rolls her eyes, but nonetheless, relaxes into his touch as he wraps his arms around her.


	28. The One Where It's Just The Hormones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naaadineee98 asked: I know I already requested a prompt but jealous Steve was such a joy to read so I’m gonna shoot my shot and ask for jealous Nat + Anonymous asked: One of them is wrong or unreasonable and knows it but refuses to admit it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extended version of Coulson’s retirement party in Chapter 6 of A Little Favor, as discussed during Steve and Nat’s Christmas Eve phone call.

It’s the hormones. That’s what Natasha tells herself as she stands on the sidewalk outside of Dalton’s and wraps her coat tighter around herself as a cool breeze blows by. There just isn’t any other explanation for how tight her chest has been or how her stomach has felt like it’s been in knots since she walked into the pub to see Steve with Kristen.

So maybe they were sharing a bed for the last few months, and maybe that had even led to loose lips and secrets being shared as they basked in the afterglow. But Steve isn’t hers. Perhaps he was for a period, as stipulated in their contract, but as the sonogram in her purse only underscores, he’s fulfilled his end of the bargain. He’s free to do what he wants, see who he pleases. And in the same token, she has no right to feel as unnerved as she does in this very moment. She sighs, looking out into the street and finding her patience running thin when another occupied cab drives by.

“Natasha, thank God I caught you.” She looks behind her, and she’s a little surprised to see Steve walking out of the pub’s door. “Darcy said you already left, so I was hoping I wasn’t too late,” he says as he stops in front of her. “How did your appointment go?”

“Fine,” she says with a nod. “Everything’s fine.”

“Yeah?” he asks, grinning. “That’s great! I thought you said you weren’t coming, so-”

“My appointment ended earlier than I thought,” she interrupts before shrugging. “Figured I’d stop by and show everyone the sonogram.”

“Oh…” he says, blinking a few times before shaking his head. “About that-”

“Where’s your friend?” she asks a little too quickly. “Kristen,” she clarifies when he looks questioningly at her. She does her best to muster up a smile as she adds, “You two looked like you were hitting it off. Good for you for finally going for it, Rogers.”

His forehead creases. “What? No. Nat, I- I came out here because-”

“Natasha, hey!”

She and Steve turn to see Strange approaching them, and she gives him a little wave. “Stephen, hi.”

Strange nods to her and then to Steve, who returns the gesture. “Sorry to interrupt,” Strange says as he looks back to her. “But I was going to head home as well and remembered you lived in the same direction, so I was wondering if you wanted to share a cab?”

“Oh, um…” She looks at Steve, a part of her hoping that he’d say something. But when he just looks between her and Strange, all she can do is swallow down the lump that’s formed in her throat. “Sure,” she tells Strange. “I’d love to.”

Strange smiles, pointing a thumb over his shoulder. “I’ll wait by the corner.”

“Okay,” she says before turning back to Steve, finding his expression unreadable as he looks at her. She bites her lip. “Goodnight, Steve.”

He nods curtly. “Goodnight.”

With a final glance at him, she turns and begins to walk away, ignoring how heavy her legs feel with every step that she takes. She sighs. _It’s just the hormones._


	29. The One With The Security Camera

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Hi! I would like to request Joey's first steps, since we never got that with Izzie. Thank you so much!!

“Come on, Joey! You can do it!”

Natasha looks on intently as Steve tries to coax their son, who’s holding onto the edge of their coffee table, into walking towards him. They’ve been attempting to catch the milestone on camera for the last twenty minutes, but their efforts have been in vain. Joseph just stares at them, putting a foot forward, only to plop back down. “I give up,” she moans, tossing her phone to the couch behind her as Steve’s shoulders sag in defeat. “We’re just going to have to live with the fact that he’s going to start walking when we’re not holding up a camera.”

“But we can’t not have this on tape,” Steve argues, scooping Joseph into his arms before sitting down next to her on the rug. “We recorded all of Izzie’s firsts. If we don’t have all of his” – he pauses to put his hands over Joseph’s ears before lowering his voice – “he might think we’re playing favorites.”

Natasha rolls her eyes. “It’s not called favorites. It’s called you-were-a-stubborn-toddler.”

“But we’re so close,” Steve says, looking down at his lap where Joseph is busy playing with his toy car. “Aren’t we, buddy?”

“No,” Joseph says, shaking his head without so much as a glance at him.

A smug grin breaks out on Natasha’s face. “Well, if you ever had doubts about him being your son…”

“Hey,” Steve says, shooting a glare at her. “I can’t take all the blame. Our kids are fifty percent you, thank you very much.”

“Exactly. It’s thanks to me that they’re absolute angels half the time,” she says, turning to smirk at him. “You’re welcome.”

His lips part to speak, but before he can get a retort out, Isabel appears from the hallway. “Daddy, can I please have a peanut butter sandwich?”

“Sure, Iz,” Steve says. “Give Daddy one sec.”

Natasha presses a kiss to Joseph’s cheek as Steve hands him to her. “Zi-zee!” Joseph says as he stands between her legs, pointing a chubby finger at Isabel.

“Yes, buddy,” Natasha says, rolling her lips. “That’s Izzie.” Her heart fills with delight as she watches Isabel wave back, making Joseph bounce on the balls of his feet at the attention. But then the toddler jolts forward, taking a shaky step, and she freezes. “Oh, my God.”

“Momma, he’s walking!” Isabel exclaims as Joseph begins to make his way over to her.

“He is!” Natasha says, feeling for her phone. “Steve!” she yells, cursing internally and scrambling to her feet when she remembers flinging it towards the couch. “Steve!”

“What?” she hears Steve’s panicked voice ask as he rushes into the living room. “What’s wrong? Oh, my god, Nat! He’s walking!”

Natasha ignores him as she searches through the couch cushions and Steve and Isabel cheer Joseph on in the background. “Ah ha!” she says, her expression falling when she turns to see Joseph already enveloped in Isabel’s arms.

“I’m so proud of you, Joey!” Isabel says, hugging her little brother tightly.

The sight brings a smile to Natasha’s face as Steve comes to stand next to her. She sighs. “I knew this was going to happen.”

“It’s fine,” he says before pointing towards the security camera on their ceiling. “I just remembered that’s still on.”

She nods, only to turn to him after a beat. “You mean that’s been on the whole time?”

“Yeah, I was supposed to turn it off when we got home last night, but then we-” The eyebrow she raises brings him to a pause. He cringes. “I’ll clean out the hard drive.”


	30. The One With Alone Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2 Anons asked: Steve and Nat trying to have alone time. Which is next to impossible with a newborn. + Hello please can we have a prompt were joey is having a bad night and won't settle until he's in bed with Steve and Nat

Natasha gasps when Steve presses a kiss to her neck, her eyes falling shut as she savors the sensation of his lips on her skin. Life with two kids while also juggling two careers is an absolute circus, and it’s nothing short of a miracle that they’ve made it to bed before eight. And though they’ve somehow managed to steal this moment to themselves, experience tells her that it’s unlikely to last. But even so, as Steve’s kisses grow teeth, teasing her pulse before soothing it over with his tongue, she lets her hands trail languidly up his back. Steve flips them over, laying her flat on her back on the bed, and she giggles.

“What?” Steve says, a ghost of a grin on his lips when he pulls away to look down at her.

“We really don’t have time for this,” she says, biting her lip. Their home is rarely as quiet as it is presently, and she knows that at any moment, one of their kids is likely to come hollering – probably as soon as they’re both close to falling asleep. If they’re to get any semblance of alone time, lingering touches are going to have to take a raincheck.

“So far so good,” Steve says, eliciting another gasp from her when he plants a kiss to her sternum and his thumb brushes over the skin left exposed between her sleep shorts and her camisole. “Maybe tonight’s our lucky night.”

She snorts at the thought, but otherwise does nothing more to object as she pulls him up to capture his lips with her own. She reaches for the hem of his shirt, pushing the material up to help rid him of it, and he groans when she scrapes her nails gently down his chest. She smirks. “Always so sensitive.”

“Yeah?” he challenges, and she holds her breath as his hand falls to the top of her shorts and moves slowly past the waistband. A devious glint fills his eyes when he realizes she’s not wearing anything underneath, and she’s unable to suppress the moan that falls from her lips when he gives her a cursory stroke. “Because it seems to me-”

A cry comes through the monitor, cutting Steve off, and they both let out a groan. Natasha sighs as she stares up at the ceiling. “Why is he so mean to us when we’re so nice to him?”

Steve chuckles, his breath tickling the skin of her neck. “That’s not how it works.”

“But it should be,” she mutters as he gets up, not bothering to put his shirt back on as he makes his way out of their bedroom.

She listens to Steve’s soothing whispers through the monitor as he enters the nursery, closing her eyes as she waits for Joseph’s cries to taper. But when a moment passes and the cries go on, she sits up, only to find Steve already at their bedroom door with their son in tow. “What’s wrong?”

“No idea,” Steve says as he approaches. “We fed him before bed, so he can’t be hungry already. He’s dry, doesn’t seem to be gassy… He’s just been really fussy all day.”

“Teeth?” she asks skeptically as she opens her arms and he places Joseph in them.

“This early?” he says, his eyebrows furrowing. “I doubt it.”

“What’s wrong, buddy?” she says as she nestles Joseph into her chest, running a hand up and down his back.

Joseph calms down almost immediately, making Steve scoff. “Mystery solved,” he says, smiling when she shoots him a confused look. “He’s just a Momma’s Boy.”

She dusts a kiss to the top of Joseph’s head in an attempt to hide her smirk. “Wonder where he gets that from.”


	31. The One Where They Spar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ella1989 asked: Their first sparring session :)

The gym is filled with the sound of her labored breathing and of her gloves colliding with the punching bag, and after the day she’s had, Natasha can’t help but revel in the satisfaction of throwing all her weight behind each strike. She does not make a habit out of harboring ill will towards other people, but there are days when others – like Brock Rumlow – made that hard not to do. And as she’s reminded of his antics this morning, she feels her rage spike once again to thermonuclear levels. With a grunt, she deals a final blow to the bag, watching it swing away from her from the force before making her way towards the bench. She plops down, sighing. No, it’s not like her to wish harm on others. But at the same time, she probably would not bat an eyelash if Rumlow got hit by a bus right now, either.

“Where’s the fight?”

The question causes her to look up, and when she does, she finds Steve standing before her with his duffel bag dangling from one shoulder. Despite her exasperation, the teasing smile on his face causes the corners of her lips to quirk upward. “East Wing, forty-first floor. Cubicle by the window.”

Steve’s expression falls. “What did he do this time?”

She huffs out another breath, freeing her hands from her gloves as he settles down next to her. “You know that story on the NY Star this morning about Justin Hammer’s dealings abroad?” she asks, watching as he nods. “The source agreed to speak to me exclusively so I could break the story tomorrow, but someone named Jack Rollins leaked it to The Star. I did some digging, and guess who Rollins was in a fraternity with at Villanova?”

“Bastard,” Steve mutters, shaking his head. “What are you going to do?”

“What I want to do is punch Rumlow in the face,” she says, “but I hear that’s frowned upon. HR violation and whatnot.” That causes them both to chuckle, and she shrugs. “I turned it over to legal, but since he didn’t exactly do the dirty work, I’m not sure there is a case.”

“I’m sorry,” he says.

A rueful smile crosses her lips. “Comes with the gig, right?”

“Doesn’t make it suck any less,” he says, to which she hums in agreement. They sit in companionable silence for a beat before he nudges her elbow with his own. “Ever been sparring?”

She turns to him, raising an eyebrow. “I said I wanted to punch Rumlow, not you.”

“And I said spar, not turn me into a punching bag,” he says, offering his hand out to her as he rises. “Come on, I promise it’s more fun than being charged with a misdemeanor for punching a coworker.”

She scoffs, but nonetheless, lets him pull her up. “You know half the people upstairs will come after me with a pitchfork if I nick you in the face, right?”

He rolls his eyes, ignoring her quip as they stop by the mats. “Okay, first rule when sparring- oof!”

Without warning, she pushes him backwards by his shoulders, sweeping his feet from underneath him and putting him flat on his back before he can register what has happened. “Did I mention that Melinda was in the military?” she asks as she leans over him, rolling her lips to keep her smile at bay at his surprised stare. “She might have taught me a thing or-”

He cuts her words short by rolling them over, eliciting a gasp from her as he pins her hands above her head. “Good,” he says, amusement clear in his eyes. “I won’t have to be so gentle.”

She smirks. Oh, this is going to be fun.


	32. The One With The 3:15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> coveredinthecolours asked: Not sure if you're still doing these but can we get Steve and Nat in an office rendezvous? Btw their dynamics with their coworkers are some of my fav parts of ALF 🤣Super highkey would love to work there.

As Natasha walks down the hall and towards the back office of the gallery, she can’t say she’s too thrilled that Steve’s decided to work from here two days out of the week. Sure, the time apart meant that they had more to talk about over dinner, but outside of their lunch breaks, they were never really the type to congregate during work hours anyway. Work was work, but in the rare occasion that they both had a couple of hours to spare… well, she much preferred walking across the floor of The Daily than taking the subway all the way to Lower Manhattan to spend it with him.

But that’s all moot now, she tells herself as she pushes the door of his office open to find him seated behind his desk with his phone pressed to his ear. His eyebrows rise in surprise when he sees her, but nonetheless, he smiles as he points to his phone before holding one finger up. “Miss Potts and I are grateful for your state’s contribution to the foundation,” he says rather sternly. “But I’m afraid that holds no bearing on where we decide to open the next gallery.”

A chuckle threatens to fall from her lips, but she bites it back as she clicks the lock into place and makes her way further into the room. She knows that tone of his, and she has half a mind to tell the person on the other end of the line not to waste their time. Very rarely could her husband be sweet talked into anything once his decision is made, and that right usually falls exclusively to their daughter.

Steve swivels in his chair as she nears his desk, looking expectantly up at her for a kiss, but his expression quickly dissolves into one of surprise when she pushes him back. “Senator,” he says, clearing his throat as she leans forward, resting one hand on the arm of his chair while the other makes a beeline for the top button of his shirt. “I’m afraid something has come up that needs my immediate attention. Yes, you too. Goodbye.”

“Let me guess,” she says when he ends the call. “The good Senator from California?”

“Nevada, actually,” he says, his gaze falling to her hand as it trails lower and lower.

“Hmm,” she says, “how is Martin?”

“Natasha,” he says, ignoring her question as he puts his hand over hers where it’s stopped on his belt buckle. “What are you doing?”

“You,” she says simply, smirking as she looks up at him from under the fan of her lashes. “I thought that was painfully obvious.”

Steve tilts his head to the side, grinning. “Hi, honey. I missed you, too.”

Natasha rolls her eyes. “The rest of my day got canceled,” she says, pulling on the elastic of her ponytail and letting her scarlet tresses cascade down her shoulders. “And since Izzie interrupted us this morning, I-”

She’s just about to reach down to rid her feet of her stilettos when his fingers encircle her wrist, effectively cutting her words off, and when she looks up at him, the way his irises have darkened to a deep navy is enough to make her stomach clench in anticipation. “Leave them on,” he says as he rises to his feet. He moves to stand in front of her, walking them back a step until her back hits the edge of his desk. Slowly, and torturously so, he pulls on the sash of her trench coat, watching in delight as the material pulls away from her body to reveal the cream and onyx lace of her bustier. He chuckles lowly, looking back up at her. “I’m not sure your decision to come down here is as spontaneous as you make it seem, Mrs. Rogers.”

“No,” she says, holding his gaze as she pushes her coat off her shoulders. She reaches forward, hooking her fingers into his belt loops to pull him flush against her, and she feels the skin on his neck prickle when she leans over to whisper in his ear, “Though I don’t really know what you expected me to do when you decided to leave the apartment in this shirt this morning.”

Steve groans as she nibbles on his earlobe. “I have a 3:15.”

“I am your 3:15,” she says, smirking into his neck.

At her words, he turns her around, trapping her between him and the desk, and as his hands bracket her waist, she can practically hear the smile in his voice. “Then I guess I better make your trip worthwhile.”


	33. The One Where Steve's Perfect

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> whisperofsunlight asked: A time Steve was ridiculously attracted to Nat or Nat to Steve :))

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Takes place after Chapter 9 of A Little Favor

It’s a Saturday in early Spring when he and Natasha finally invite their friends over for a housewarming, and from where Steve sits on the couch with a beer in hand, he’s vaguely aware of Bucky recounting some shenanigan of theirs from their time at West Point and astutely placing the blame on him.

Normally, he’d be ready to argue that Bucky’s the punk who instigates everything. But right now, he finds that he doesn’t care about keeping score. Not when his eyes are trained across the room to where Natasha stands, an amused smile on her lips as Jane talks animatedly to the group that’s gathered around their kitchen island. She has one hand on her protruding belly and another clutching a mug of tea – a mug, he notes, that he first bought when he moved into his very first apartment in Brooklyn, and now she’s holding it as if it’s been hers all along – and he can’t help but think that she’s never looked quite as beautiful to him as she does at this very moment.

But then Natasha laughs, the kind that has her eyes crinkling and her head tipping back, and he finds himself swiftly mistaken. Here and now, with her face aglow with unadulterated joy, she’s absolutely breathtaking, and the fact that he’s fortunate enough to come home to her every day does not escape him.

“Rogers!” Tony’s voice breaks him out of his reverie, and he looks over to see the exasperated expression on his friend’s face. “Did you even hear my question?”

“Y-yeah, sure,” he says, standing and mindlessly handing his beer over to Thor and ignoring the confused stares from Bucky and Strange as he begins to stalk towards the kitchen. As he approaches, Natasha meets his eyes, smiling as she places the mug down on the counter behind her.

“Guess what-” she begins, but before she can say anything more, he pulls her close, his hand tilting her face upwards as he leans down to meet her lips.

A beat passes before he pulls away, watching as her eyes flutter open and she stares up at him, confused. He grins. “Hi.”

“Hi,” she echoes breathlessly even as the corners of her mouth begin to tug up. “You good?”

He lets out a contented sigh at her question, running his thumb gently over the line of her jaw. “Perfect.”

“We’re perfect too, thanks for asking!”

The interjection causes them to break their stare, and when they turn, Steve feels his cheeks flush to see that all their friends have converged by their kitchen doorway – Darcy, the culprit, stands recording the moment on her phone. Thor gives them an enthusiastic two thumbs up as Jane and Maria stand next to him, beaming. Pepper and Bucky shake their heads fondly while Tony pretends to gag.

It’s Strange, still sporting a matching smirk with Christine, that’s first to speak. “Can we still stay for dinner or…”

Steve turns to Natasha, sharing a look with her before turning back to their friends. “No,” he says at the same time she says yes, and the room erupts in laughter.


	34. The One With Natasha's Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: romanogers + being late for a meeting

“Nat? You still here?”

“Closet!” she yells back, reaching for her earrings on the bureau before turning towards the full-length mirror. “I should have left by now, but I got coffee on my dress and had to change. Kids make it to class okay?”

“Yeah,” Steve says, his voice growing louder as he nears. “But Joey’s school…”

The abrupt pause in his words causes her to look up, and through the reflection before her, she sees him standing frozen by the doorway of their walk-in closet. “Steve?” she says, prompting him to meet her gaze. She raises an eyebrow. “Joey’s school?”

Steve shakes his head. “Right, um… his school just sent us a reminder for that Parents’ Night thing this Friday.”

“5:30, right?” she says as she fastens one earring on and he nods. “I think we’re supposed to bring snacks to share.”

“I’ll pick up something from ma’s bakery,” he says, his eyebrows furrowing. “Who are you meeting with again?”

“Aldrich Killian,” she says with a sigh as she secures a Pearl on her other ear. “From what I’ve heard, he’s not exactly stellar company, but Pepper- oh!” She gasps when she feels his hands – cold from his walk from the Kindergarten and back – against her waist, and it’s not until he has his arms wrapped fully around her that she realizes he’s moved from the door. She narrows her eyes at him. “Steve.”

“This new?” he asks, making sure to hold her gaze in the mirror as his thumb brushes over the lace of the garter belt holding her thigh-highs in place.

“Y-yes,” she stammers out, sucking in a breath when she sees his irises dark with lust.

“It’s nice,” he says, pushing her hair over one shoulder to pepper kisses from her neck and down to where her bra strap lays. “You’re utterly ravishing, Natasha Romanoff.”

The stubble on his face is rough against her skin, but the sensation has her eyes falling shut and her teeth sinking into her bottom lip all the same. In all honesty, she wants to laugh – surely there’s some degree of ridiculousness in the fact that after two kids and nearly a decade of marriage, the sight of her scantily clad can still wind him up and the feel of his body on hers still has her hot and bothered. Nevertheless, a part of her relishes it. Adores it, even.

It’s when his hand begins to trail South that her eyes snap open. “Steve,” she says warningly, her hand coming to cover his where it rests just below her navel. “I have a meeting.”

“I can be quick,” he says, an impish grin on his lips as his fingers resume their descent and dip past the waistband of her panties. “You know I can.”

Had this been any other time, she’d admonish him for being so smug. But with her blood thrumming in her veins and her knees no longer feeling all that steady and his fingers hovering over her…

“Fuck it,” she says, turning in his arms and pulling his face down towards hers. In a beat, he’s lifted her to him, walking them back and setting her down on her vanity and paying no mind to the makeup bottles that come clattering down the edge. 


	35. The One With Joey's *Official* First Word

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> calfairy87 asked: Steve and Nat were competing for Joey’s first word but..... spill the tea: who won? Or did the accidental curse word count?? 😜

“Have you seen this?”

From where she’s seated on the couch feeding Joey a bottle, Natasha looks up to see Steve standing at the threshold of their living room. “Heard about it,” she admits, glancing at the front cover of the paper he’s holding up before reverting her attention back to their son. “Can’t say I care to read it, though.”

“They’re claiming your Pulitzer win was because of your connections, Nat,” he says incredulously, the paper slapping against the glass as he flings it down onto their coffee table. “I mean, where do these people get off writing lies about you like this?”

“Steve,” she says, placing the empty bottle down and shifting Joey against her shoulder. “It’s fine-”

“It’s not fine, Nat!” he replies, one hand flying into the air in exasperation as he paces. “I see how you pour your blood, sweat, and tears into your work every single day. Everything you’ve gotten, you’ve gotten because you’ve worked hard, and they don’t just get to print these libelous things-”

“Steve.”

“I just…” he says, both hands coming to rest on his waist as he turns to her. “Why aren’t you outraged by this?

“Because of what you just said,” she says simply, rising to her feet as Steve’s eyebrows furrow at her words. “You said that you see how hard I work. You. And as long as you and our kids and our family know that, then that’s all that matters.” Her shoulder lifts in a shrug. “Eddie Brock and the NY Star can write that I have eleven toes for all I care.”

He scoffs, a soft smile forming on his lips as he steals a glance down at her bare feet. “You don’t really have eleven toes, do you?”

“Ha ha,” she says drily before shaking her head. “In all seriousness, though. Let’s not sweat the little things, okay?”

“Okay,” he says, “but that doesn’t mean that every time we see him, I don’t think about stra-” His words are cut off by the glare she sends his way as she nods towards Joey, so he settles instead for putting his hands out before him, mimicking squeezing tightly.

“Very mature,” she quips, watching his lips part with what she assumes is a snarky comeback, but before he can get the words out, a giggle echoes through the room. She chuckles, turning to Joey. “Dada’s silly, isn’t he, baby boy?”

Joey giggles once more, pointing at Steve. “Dada!”

Steve’s eyes widen. “Did he just-”

“I think so,” she says, excitement coloring her tone. “Joey, who’s that?”

Joey pauses as if to ponder her question, before beaming. “Dada!”

“He said Dada!” Steve exclaims, the sheer elation in his voice making her laugh. He closes the distance between them, his earlier anger all but forgotten as he takes Joey from her, making the little boy squeal in delight as he peppers his face with kisses. “You really said Dada!”

“Dada!” Joey repeats.

“Show off!” she says, unable to keep the smile from her face as Steve blows bubbles on Joey’s belly and their son’s laughter fills the room.


	36. The One With Natasha's Birthday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hopeandserenity asked: Natasha's birthday

Muffled voices rouse Natasha from her sleep, but as the bedroom door creaks open and footfalls pitter patter against the hardwood, she makes sure to keep her eyes shut. In a second, the mattress dips, and she has to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling.

“Momma?”

“Hmm…” she groans, making a show of pulling the comforter over her head. “Too early!”

“But we have a surprise for you!” Isabel says, excitement bubbling in her tone.

“That so?” she asks, and as she peeks from underneath the covers, the sight of her children and her husband in pajamas and party hats makes her beam.

“Happy Birthday!” they yell in unison just as Steve holds up the tray of food and Isabel and Joseph pull the strings on the party poppers, sending confetti flying across the bed.

“You guys,” she manages to say through her laughter as she sits up.

Isabel and Joseph jump into her arms, enveloping her in a tight hug. “Happy Birthday, momma!” Isabel says, placing a party hat on her head before handing her an envelope. “This is from Joey and me.”

She pulls the card out, her eyes scanning the drawing of their family by the Bethesda fountain on the front before opening it up. Inside, the words read:

_Thank you for being the best momma ever. We love you more than waffles. Happy Birthday! Love, Izzie and Joey_

Tears sting her eyes, threatening to fall, but nevertheless, she chuckles at how Joey had signed his name is huge block letters - a stark contrast from Isabel’s neat handwriting. “Oh, figs,” she says, dropping a kiss to Isabel’s temple and then to Joseph’s. “Thank you. I love it.”

“And the ‘fetti?” Joseph asks, leaning forward to grab handfuls of the silver strips.

“Yes, bud,” she says amusedly, brushing the hair away from his eyes. “I love the confetti, too.”

“That was his idea,” Steve pipes in, setting the tray down on the mattress before leaning over for a kiss. “Mine” – he pauses, smiling as he produces a gift box from his back – “was a little less messy.”

“We wanted to get you a blue giraffe,” Isabel interjects as Steve hands her the box. “But Daddy said you wouldn’t want that.”

“Duly noted,” she says, Isabel’s expression of disbelief eliciting a laugh from both her and Steve. She pulls the red bow loose and lifts the lid, gasping when sees a First Edition of Wuthering Heights – the last missing piece of her collection and the one that’s eluded her for years – inside. “Steve,” she breathes out. “You really did not have to.”

Steve waves off her words. “I wanted to. And really, you deserve this and more, Nat.” He smiles. “You deserve the world.”

A warmth unfurls in her chest, and she mouths the words, “I love you.”

The rest of their morning is spent in the warmth of their bed, huddled around the feast of waffles, scrambled eggs, and bacon that Steve had prepared. And as she’s showered with hugs and kisses laced with maple syrup, she finds herself wondering how she had gotten so lucky to have a family as wonderful as hers.

It’s after Steve insists that she stay in bed while he takes the kids out to get washed up that she starts thumbing through the pages of the book. “Forget something?” she asks when the door opens again only moments later.

“Nah,” Steve says, causing her eyebrow to rise in intrigue when he locks the door behind him. “I’m here to give you your other gift.”

She tilts her head to the side as he walks towards the foot of their bed. “I get more than one?”

“Even better,” he says, making her squeal when he pulls her towards the end of the bed by her ankles. “You get multiple.”


	37. The One With The Holiday Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Isabel gets in trouble, they think it’s hilarious but have to be the strict parents in front of her

As far as children go, Natasha knows that she and Steve really lucked out. While Isabel isn’t by any means perfect – after all, she is still prone to the occasional outburst and susceptible to mischief as any four-year-old would be – she’s kind, smart, steadfast in her belief of what’s right and wrong, and never afraid to speak her mind.

Isabel is everything she hoped her child would turn out to be when she contemplated becoming a mother, and had it been any other time, she knows she and Steve would be arguing over which of the two of them had bestowed these traits upon their daughter. But on a day like today, where they find themselves inside her office as they try to shepherd their daughter’s bold personality (in the middle of The Daily’s Holiday party no less), she realizes that maybe she wouldn’t mind giving him all the credit.

“But Daddy, he was being so mean to Uncle Thor!” Isabel says, her face scrunched in a scowl.

“Isabel, that’s not the point,” Steve says, crossing his arms over his chest. “While I’m sure Uncle Thor appreciates you coming to his defense, he’s old enough to handle himself. And the word you used? It’s rude and you shouldn’t be calling people that.”

“Uncle Tony uses it all the time,” Isabel mumbles, her eyes downturned.

“And you know what we said about repeating what Uncle Tony says,” Natasha says, to which Isabel pouts. “Look, we will talk about this more when we get home, but right now” – she points to the door – “you should go find Mr. Sitwell and apologize for what you said.”

Isabel’s lips press into a line as she ponders their words. Eventually, she sighs. “Okay.”

Natasha walks Isabel to the door, watching by the frame as the little girl makes it down the hall and towards the main floor where the party is still ongoing, before turning back to Steve. For a moment, they stare at each other, but it lasts but a second before they burst out in laughter. “We’re only laughing because it’s Sitwell, right?”

“For sure,” he says with a shake of his head. “But do you have any idea how many times I’ve wanted to say those words to him?”

“She really called Sitwell a dick to his face,” she says, unable to keep the smirk off her lips.

“Kid’s got more guts in her four years than we’ve been able to muster in the decade we’ve been working with the guy.” He shrugs. “If I didn’t have to be a good parent, I might be proud. Maybe even a little jealous.”

“We did make her,” she points out. “So technically, it’s like we called Sitwell a dick to his face.”

He extends a hand out, bumping fists with her before smiling. “Maybe if we’re lucky, she’ll push Rumlow into the ice sculpture next.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 


	38. The One Where Natasha's Really, Really Grateful

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous asked: Steve and Natasha’s first holiday as a couple

When Steve had suggested hosting Thanksgiving, Natasha admits she was quite skeptical. Holiday gatherings had always been a small affair when she was growing up, and the mere idea of entertaining both their family and friends when their five-month-old needed to be put down for a nap thrice a day, was nothing short of daunting. But as she leans against the kitchen island, watching all the people she holds near and dear to her mingling by the fireplace, she finds herself glad that her husband had convinced her that like everything else they teamed up for, they would pull it off.

“You okay?” Steve asks, making her jump. “Sorry.”

“No, it’s fine,” she says as he comes to rest his hip against the island, looking at her expectantly. She shrugs. “I was just thinking about how grateful I am for our family.” They share a smile at that, and she shifts to mirror his position. “But also… about how sad I am that the Pecan pie got wiped out while I was feeding Izzie.”

“Don’t be so sure about that,” he says, a conspiratorial grin on his lips as he makes his way towards the cupboards. “Watch my six.”

Her eyebrows furrow, but for good measure, she looks out onto their living room and then back to him to see him pull one of the doors open and rummage through the shelves. It’s only when he turns back with a Sarah’s box in hand that she smiles.

“Snuck this for us before Thor ate it all,” he explains, setting the box down and opening it up to reveal a couple slices of pie. “But if anyone asks, we’re all out.”

She shakes her head at him, taking one of the forks he pulls out from the drawer and bringing a piece of pie to her mouth. “Oh, my God,” she moans. “Did I ever tell you how grateful I am that I married you?”

He chuckles as he reaches for a bite of his own. “My pie hiding skills the only reason you’re grateful you married me?”

“Hmm…” She puts the fork down as she steps closer to him. “Well, there’s also this,” she says, cupping his face. “We couldn’t have pulled this off without what’s up here.” Her hands fall to his chest, the material of his cable knit sweater soft to the touch. “And this. This is a really big one, actually. Not a single day goes by that I’m not grateful for what’s in here. But… wanna know what I’m really, really grateful for?”

“Really, really huh?” He beams, pulling her closer. “What?”

She smirks, snaking her arms around him and sliding a hand into each of his back pockets. “This.”

“Oh! Sorry!”

They step away from each other at the intrusion, turning to see Bucky and Wanda standing before them – the former holding Isabel in his arms while the latter looks off to the side.

“Sorry…” Bucky says, “but your daughter needs a diaper change.”

Natasha waves him off. “No, it’s-”

“I got it,” Steve says, moving to take Isabel from Bucky. He has one foot out the kitchen when he hears his friend call out to him, prompting him to turn back. “What?”

“I’m really, really grateful for your ass too, pal,” Bucky says, grinning from ear to ear.

Natasha nearly chokes on her slice of pie. Wanda groans. And from where Steve stands, his daughter on his hip, he can only narrow his eyes at Bucky. “I hate you.”

**Author's Note:**

> Follow Steve and Natasha's journey to finding happiness in [A Little Favor](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14924780/chapters/34574921) and some of its deleted scenes at [Beyond a Favor](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16216667/chapters/37903883).
> 
> Tumblr: [natrogersfics](http://www.natrogersfics.tumblr.com)


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